Paper Clips vs Staples

Homework and papers are all a part of being a student and when completed, the final task to print them (double sided), and attach them so each page stays together.  Most students reach for the stapler to staple their papers together, however do they ever stop to think that that little piece of steel cannot be reused and most likely cannot be recycled?  An alternative to stapling papers together is to use a paper clip.  Now some may argue that paper clips are made of more metal than a staple, which is true, however paper clips can be reused many times.  Typically, homework assignments and term papers are returned to the student so the paper clip can then be reused again. 

By eliminating staples and reusing paper clips, you will be reducing the amount of pollution caused in the mining of precious metals and by the production and transportation of the staples.  If you invest in paper clips, they will last you a long time therefore saving you some money by not having to buy more staples.  Also, staples require a stapling device, which is another cost for the environment and your wallet.  You may not think that a tiny staple will hurt the environment, but just keep in mind that every little thing adds up to one big change.


Update: from Be EGOlogical Reader, Richard, "I used this thing called the Lowen staple. You fold the corner of the paper. Then make 2 rips about half a cm apart and fold the little tab over. It holds the papers together and uses neither!"

Half vs Full Flashcards

There are many methods when it comes to studying for a test.  Some people rewrite their notes, type out study guides, or wastefully make flashcards.  For some people making flashcards are an extremely helpful study technique and that's awesome!  However, making flashcards also wastes a lot of paper.  More specifically, flashcards are used to typically for remembering definitions with one vocab word per card...  ONE!  This technique becomes an extreme waste of paper because there is a lot of empty space on the notecard, therefore excess amounts of paper are being wasted.  Next time you want to make flashcards, try cutting them in half or in fourths (depending on how much information you are writing on them).

Cutting the notecards in half will reduce the amount of paper you waste because you aren't wasting as much plain space as before.  If your information is small, you can even cut your notecards into fourths and this will reduce your notecard consumption even more!  The production of notecards can be costly because the paper is much thicker than a normal piece of paper.  This will reduce the pollution produced in the destruction of forests for paper pulp, carbon emitted during the production and transportation of the item, and the actual cost of buying the notecards from your wallet.  Since you will be using less flashcards you will save a lot money because you won't have to buy them as frequently.  And don't forget the EGOlogical tip to write small.

Disposable vs Refillable Pens

The use of pens are almost unavoidable in today’s society.  You use them at school, work, meetings, to sign autographs…  You know, just the important things.  When you start using a new pen, it feels like you will never run out of ink.  However, eventually the ink will run out and you will have to get a new pen.  Unfortunately new pens typically cost more than we expect, but I have an EGOlogical tip that will not only cut on the costs of new ink, it will reduce the amount of plastic you consume! 

The answer: buy pens that can fit refillable ink.  The initial cost may be a little more than a disposable pen, but I promise the cost is worth it.  Ink refills are fairly cheap and they don’t have the unnecessary extra plastic casing around it that you already haveso there is less plastic being produced and consumed.  They also reduce the amount of pollution produced from packaging and transportation costs.  If you already own a pen that supports ink refills, great!  Just buy the ink refills that are supported by that pen the next time you go to the store.  If you don’t have one, consider investing in a pen that can support ink refills.  Now some may argue buying a new pen is promoting excess plastic consumption, however in the long run you will be saving money and plastic from the landfills because you putting time and money into an investment for your future pen usage.  

Normal vs Shorthand

How often do you find yourself in class or in a meeting furiously writing down mass amounts of information as quickly as you can?  It’s commonly a difficult task to write down information slide per slide or verbatim out of the speaker’s mouth, therefore you should develop a system of shorthand to help you write more efficiently as well as gain more information in the same amount of time. 

Developing your own system of shorthand can be a difficult task if you’re not used to it, but once you get it down you will be happy you switched.  Not only will it let you write more, it will save the environment!  Since your shorthand will reduce the amount of words/letters you write, it will reduce the amount of ink used in your pen and the amount of paper you will go through.  By reducing your ink and paper consumption rates, you will reduce the amount that needs to be produced.  This will save pollution in production, transportation, and consumption costs as well as save you some money because you won’t have to buy as many pens and notebooks as often AND on top of that you have more notes!  Don't forget to the EGOlogical tip to write small!  


Tips to creating legible shorthand: be patient and figure out what works best for you and if it helps tell yourself you’re doing it for the Earth!  Good Luck!  

College vs Wide Ruled Paper

When we first learned to write, we probably all received a sheet of WIDE ruled paper to practice our handwriting on.  Wide-ruled paper has BIG lines on it for us to write messy and make lots mistakes especially since we were just learning how to write.  As we got older, let’s say in about third grade, we received new paper called college-ruled paper.  It was probably a big step because now you had to write smaller and neater.  College-ruled loose leaf paper is pretty much all that’s available to us if we are out of elementary school, however there are many notebooks out there that can be bought in wide-ruled.  Since wide-ruled paper has fewer lines than college-ruled paper, you use it up faster and waste more paper.  Whether it’s for school or for work, we have the tendency to write bigger and go through paper faster if the lines are larger.  Therefore, make sure you buy college-ruled notebooks because they will last longer. 

You save the environment by reducing the amount of notebooks being produced and consumed, saving the destruction of forests for tree pulp and the pollution made when producing them.  You will also save money because you won’t have to buy as many notebooks.  It is a common mistake to go to the store and purchase a notebook without reading what kind it is because we ASSUME it’s college-ruled.  To avoid disappointment later, make sure you look at the cover to see if it says “College-ruled” and open it up to double check.  And don’t forget the EGOlogical tip to write small instead of big!  

Skinny vs Fat Highlighters

Reading textbooks is often difficult especially when you’re trying to remember all the information.  Highlighting is an easy way to choose what things you want to remember most by highlighting a certain sentence or paragraph of importance to come back to later.  When highlighting your textbooks, what kind of highlighter do you typically use?  Probably just whatever highlighter you had handy.  Now, think back to when you bought that highlighter… did you want the skinny highlighters or the fat ones? 

This EGOlogical tip is going to encourage you to buy and use skinny highlighters versus using fat ones.  As you can see in the photo above, the fat highlighter used twice as much ink than the skinnier one for the same amount of space.  Therefore, you will go through your fat highlighter much faster than your skinner one.  Also, the fat highlighters require more plastic to produce and more plastic means more pollution in the production and transportation of the product.  This will save you money too because you won’t have to buy new highlighters as often since your skinny highlighters won’t run out as quickly.  Why spend more money and pollute the Earth for using a fat highlighter when a skinny highlighter does the same job?  

Big vs Small Handwriting

Almost no two person’s handwriting is the same.  Everyone has their own style, thickness, or height to each letter they write.  One thing that most people aren’t aware of is how much space their handwriting fills up on a paper or how much ink their personal handwriting uses.  Next time you’re taking notes in class, at a meeting, or simply writing a grocery list, take a mental note of what size your handwriting is and the also the thickness of the letters you write.  Once you recognize your style of writing, next time you write something down try to write your letters smaller. 

This will reduce the number of lines you use on your paper, in time saving you pages and eventually a lot of paper.  You will also be using less ink since your words are smaller.  Writing smaller will save the amount of paper and ink you will have to buy therefore reducing the polluting production and consumption of those products.  It will also save you money because you won’t go through paper and pens as quickly and you will eventually have to buy less.  This EGOlogical tip is something that you will constantly have to remind yourself because your handwriting is something that comes to you intuitively and it’s difficult to change this routine.  Eventually this new trick will become a habit for you to apply to everything you write down!  Good Luck!

Almos

Bring Your Own Lunch (BYOL)

Lunchtime.  Probably the most anticipated meal of the day for the people who are excited for a break in their day or the people who are simply just hungry.   Most campuses have student unions or other locations nearby where students can purchase their lunch.  Now we all know that food on the go just always tastes amazing, but do we ever stop to think how much waste is created through the consumption of your meal?  More specifically, take-out places typically use Styrofoam or plastic containers and disposable utensils that will be thrown away and sit in landfills for thousands of years.   Also, just think about how much money you spend on lunch each week!

One more benefit to bringing your own lunch from home is that it is a lot healthier than eating out.  When packing your lunch, use reusable containers for items not individually packed, bring a lunchbox instead of a plastic/paper bag, and bring your own reusable utensils instead of disposable ones.  Keep in mind that bringing your own lunch also needs to work for your own convenience too.  So if you can’t ultimately cut out take-out lunches, maybe try to start brining your lunch three times a week instead of five.  It’s up to you to make the change.  Be committed, I guarantee you will feel proud of eating healthier and proud of that extra money you’ll be saving.  

Education Benefits You and the Environment

Happy first day of school!  Now I know when the word school comes to mind you don’t automatically think, FUN… especially because your lazy and relaxing summer is over and you have to wake up early, attend boring classes, and do assignments that take up way too much of your free time.  Yes school is tough and it could be boring, but I just want you to keep in mind the reason why you attend school.  I know each and every student has a goal, whether that is becoming a millionaire or working to help others, there is a passion and a drive somewhere within that smart brain of yours to help you achieve your greatest desires. Therefore, I am going to encourage you to learn to love school. 

So, you’re probably wondering how this EGOlogical “tip” relates to the environment.  Well, education is the key element to saving the environment.  Modernization theorists believe that over time as technology increases, we will come up with new ideas and ways to better society as well as help the environment.  The only way to live up to those expectations is for us to be educated.  Education opens so many doors for each individual and there are many people that don’t have access to those resources.  So instead of claiming that you’re “bored” in class and posting it as your Facebook status, try paying attention because all it takes is a few educational words from a professor that could change your life.  Or maybe instead of whining about how you have to write a seven-page paper due tomorrow and sharing your aggression about it with the rest of the world on Facebook, who I will add probably don’t even care, actually work ahead and be excited to write a paper that you are proud to turn it.  Our future relies on our success and you are the only person with the power to shape and mold your future.  You are smart, beautiful, and intelligent, so stop whining about school and start using your talents to change the world!   

(Check out the "School" topics section to read EGOlogical tips to use throughout your school year!)

Print Double Sided

I’m sure you’ve heard this one many times and often ignore it, but I’m going to repeat it:  DOUBLE SIDE YOUR PAPERS!   You will use half the amount of paper it would take to print notes or essays making your paper last twice as long saving you twice the amount of money.  By reducing the time it takes to use up the package of paper you bought, you will eventually save a lot of money.  Some printers don’t have a double-sided printing option.  I know this is extremely time consuming, but you then must print each page one at a time.  When the printing options are displayed on your screen, press “From Page 1 to 1,” print that page, then flip the paper around in the paper holder and print “From Page 2 to 2” and so on until you’re done.  

Note-Taking

Taking notes in class is an essential part of a college student's success.  There are lots of pretty lines and margins that help you “organize” your notes.  However, who ever said you need to follow those?  You can be just as organized ignoring those lines and margins.  By writing on the entire page, you reduce the amount of pages used up in your notebook causing you to utilize your notebook for a longer period of time.  You then won’t have to buy notebooks as frequently saving you money and Earth’s precious resources.  

Automatic vs Normal Doors

Most colleges or public buildings have automatic doors to assist the handicapped.  However, automatic doors are bad!  If you are handicapped, I understand you may not be able to do this, but for those who are able use the non-automatic door please use it.  Yes that requires you to use your muscles and open a door but doing this will reduce the amount of heat/air conditioning from leaving the building.  An automatic door keeps the door open letting heat/air conditioning escape 4 times longer than using a normal door that swings shut right away.  This will help reduce the amount of heat/cool air costs for your school and that money could be used towards other projects to help your education.  And as an added bonus for gentlemen, holding the door open for ladies is quite the generous common courtesy.  Maybe holding the door for that cute girl behind you will be the start of something beautiful.  

Textbooks

College Textbooks.  Two words that will make you cringe due to their obnoxious prices.  An average college student will spend over $500 a semester on books for their classes.  However, there are ways to reduce that cost.  Go to different bookstores on or around your campus to figure out who has the best RENTAL prices.  Renting books reduces the amount of resources needed to produce a brand new book and goes back to the simple idea of reusing. 

Another important resources for textbook rentals is a wonderful site called Chegg.  Chegg saves students hundreds of dollars each year through their online service that rents books for a decent price and for every order they plant a tree!  It also costs $0 to ship the books back to Chegg, which makes it an even more affordable service for students.


Check out the link below.  It's easy to use and use this code to receive an extra discount: CC127922
Chegg.com: Rent Textbooks. Cheap Textbook Rentals for College

Study Guides

When making study guides on your computer for notes or upcoming tests, widen the margins and reduce the font size to utilize maximum page space.  Also, avoid double spacing.  This can take a 7 page study guide and turn it into 4 page study guide not only saving trees made into paper, but saving you more paper you can use for later projects and increasing the period of time until you need to buy more paper. 

Reuse School Supplies

Reuse school supplies from previous semesters.  You don’t need brand new supplies each and every semester.  Therefore, reusing notebooks, folders, pens, etc. will cut down on the amount of resources it took to produce these items as well as save money on materials you don’t need.